It is sometimes amazing to me how cleaning my house (or having kids help clean my house in this morning's case) changes the atmosphere of my house so drastically for me. This may sound strange to some, but having the house clean and smelling traces of bleach and other cleaners does wonders for my mood and relaxation. I don't know if it has to do with my OCD issues or if it is simply some kind of sensory nostalgia, but my mood improves by leaps and bounds when I feel like my home is clean and sanitized. Moving furniture and doing a deep clean is probably very stressful for most people but it acts in the opposite for me. I often start out irritable and full of anxiety and stress but by the time things are getting where I want them and the smells are starting to fill the house, my whole demeanor and stress level changes drastically.
Amazingly, as long as I do the directing and the kids are not trying to tell each other what to, it seems to lighten the mood for them as well. They start working cooperatively to help me and each other out and then get into all kinds of discussions while we work. For those parents who don't make their children do chores and feel kids shouldn't be responsible for the deep cleaning in the home, pay attention here. First, it teaches them how to keep their space neat and organized which is a skill they need to have as adults even if you have the money to hire someone else to do it. Second, when they work cooperatively, they learn to deal with one another based on their strengths and weaknesses and if you make them keep the television off, they actually talk to each other. Third, they learn a good work ethic and how to accommodate differing personalities and priorities. Bottom line, teaching your kids to clean is good for them. I am now done with my sermon for the day.
It finally stormed yesterday afternoon and cooled things off enough to be tolerable. We got some nasty lightening and hail for a while but it was worth it to get some relief from the oppressive heat we have been dealing with. That may have something to do with my improved mood today as well. Unlike most of the people I know, I get less tolerant of heat and more tolerant of cold as I get older. I seriously want to move much further north at some point in our future. It might have to wait until the little one is finished with school but until it happens, I consider it a lifetime goal.
We are still on a house hunt too. Storm is out running errands at the moment, but that endeavor will commence when he gets home. I am praying to the Goddess constantly that things work out the way they are meant to and that they are meant to get us out of this house and into another school district before the young one starts school, but we shall see. At least at this point I can see us making some progress on going through and weeding out the immense amount of "stuff" we have and getting things better organized in preparation for a move. I just hope everyone else in the house will work with me on this. Keep your fingers crossed for me.
Blessings.
No comments:
Post a Comment